Volume 9, Issue 28
The actions the cities were taking to prevent further violence were the usual steps of short-term measures. Increasing police patrols, confiscating illegal guns, and efforts of community outreach were the usual suggestions. It didn’t work.
This week, ABC News tracked more than 900 shooting incidents. The Milwaukee Bucks’ NBA championship celebration should have been an evening of fun and revelry. Instead, it turned into chaos when gunfire spoiled the occasion. The news report labeled this gun violence “One nation under fire: a week’s glance at gun violence ripping across America.”
“The shootings are only a snapshot of the skyrocketing gun violence that has swept the nation in recent months. Between Saturday, July 17, and Friday, July 23, the Gun Violence Archive tracked at least 1,018 shooting incidents -- a shooting every 10 minutes -- that left at least 404 people dead and 928 wounded. In total, more than 1,000 were wounded or killed this week alone. These numbers are not static and are constantly updated as data comes in.”
Interviews with police chiefs, mayors, governors, and social activists leave the answers for solutions without remedy. Universal critique on the cause and effect of the bloodshed approaches unanimity. The breakdown of the family, lack of education resulting in poverty, a societal death spiral of hopelessness, despair, and unemployment are the culprits of personal destruction. Vertiginous dialog continues.
So, what’s to be done about it?
A national initiative of commitment to the environmental and individual stability for the growth of our children must become America’s call to arms. Nothing less than the national long-term effort to address global warming or our country’s priorities on rebuilding the infrastructure is satisfactory. America led the world in the eradication of polio. Our country set a goal of putting a man on the moon in ten years and achieved it.
General Motors has declared that, by 2037, they will be out of the internal combustion car business. 2035 is the date set as the national objective to be carbon neutral in many industries, if not the entire national economy.
America can set a goal that, by 2037, no child will be part of a gang unled, unloved, unrecognized, or without anything for which to belong. In the year of launch and each succeeding year, the system will start with every five-year-old in America and nurture them year-by-year for 16 years until the age of 21. We declare our children a national asset, of greater value than any other national possession.
There has been more than one documented and certified study that shows if a person does three things, they are 75% more likely to never go to jail and become members of the middle class. These three things are, learn a skill, get a job, and get married. This is simple, yes, but a fact no less.
What would this entail?
Number one. Every child in America, as each state decides by law, must obtain a high school education, a GED, a licensed vo-tech skill, or a recognized vocation. If an individual refuses to get a minimal education or be trained for a job, they would be barred from receiving any state or federal services. A driver’s license would be issued if a student is in school or seriously pursuing a GED. Of course, many students have extenuating circumstances. Some have a parent in prison or no parents at all. They may be abused. They may have a drug or alcohol problem. But they will know from an early age what is expected of them if they are to participate in society. They must know without question that their country will never give up on them. Specialized counseling, individual services, and after-hours programs will be part of the formula. These services and programs exist today. This initiative will focus all resources on achieving the national goal and priority of ensuring that every child graduates from high school.
Children with special needs would be exempt. Parents are responsible for decisions concerning their children's education.
Number two. Establish apprenticeships to enhance and augment vo-tech skills, particularly for those needing extra attention. Well before the age of 18, every child will be counseled on options to seek personal employment.
Number three. Secure the borders to eliminate gun trafficking. Illegal firearms are as big a problem as illegal drugs. Foreign cartels are supplying many of the guns leading to criminal activity in American cities. We have the technology to control the borders. We just have to have the will to protect our children at all costs.
Number four. The United States foreign policy should make it clear that any gang operating outside our borders penetrating our society with illegal drugs and illegal firearms will be dealt with at their own strongholds on their own soils.
Number five. A national priority must be established to get repeat criminals off the street. COVID has caused a backlog in the administration of the criminal courts. Rahm Emanuel, the former mayor of Chicago, recently stated that 2,000 known offenders in the Windy City commit 75% of the violent crimes. Every individual’s constitutional right should be protected. Yet, the state has a compelling interest to get these criminals off the street and give the citizens of Chicago some relief. Emanual calls for expediting the criminal justice system.
Number six. In this time of apparent crisis in our cities, extraordinary measure must take precedence. Both the police and community services must be expanded. Both are priorities. Police protection is critical. A law enforcement presence will deter crime. Community services should be expanded for more long-term results without defunding the police.
Number seven. The most important beneficial service we as a country can provide our children is to give them a sense of belonging. The point is missed in the universal critique that the underlying problem of despair is a sense of abandonment. There is no feeling of belonging to a national family.
The United States should require two years of service for every individual U.S. citizen. This obligation can be structured to be as simple as volunteer work while one is in school or working in government at the local level to help the city save money. It does not matter whether the job is paid or unpaid, regimented or self-managed. The point is that every citizen should do something for their country and, in so doing, feel unity with every other citizen that did the same thing. Such a service would provide a sense of belonging to a culture wherein each paid some minimal sacrifice for the greater good.
There are other countries that have implemented such a policy. In Israel, every citizen serves two years in the military. In Switzerland, national service is more defined as public service.
In the United States, a man or woman serving in the military, a classroom teacher, a policeman, a fireman, or a first responder have fulfilled their obligation of service to their country. All Americans between the ages of 5 and 65 in the year of launch can consider deferring Social Security benefits for two years as a service financially to their country.
A suggested theme for this national mission could be coined in the national motto found on the dollar bill: novus ordo seclorum, a new order for the generations.
In facing the issue of gun violence in America, raising our children up in the ways of the Lord, with love, support, and discipline, will benefit them all the days of their lives. In belonging, the generations will elevate the foundations of societal peace and stability.
My name is Marc Nuttle and this is what I believe.
What do you believe?